The thing about grief
is it’s more than the moment of impact.
It's also the shockwaves
after the asteroid hits your world.
It’s the cracking
along the fault lines
breaking apart continents.
It’s respecting the rage of the underground rivers
racing madly where you hoped
there might be gold, or at least iron
enough to try to make steel.
It’s the near drowning
in dozens of deep wells of resentment
before you find any sign
of a reservoir of grace.
It’s the exhaustion
in the mental cyclones
of forgetting and remembering,
wondering which is more painful.
It is also knowing
that even if every breath
I take ever after
is ragged and choked
there is something in me
that wants to keep breathing.
Image from Wallpaper Safari
Song Choice: When I Get There by P!nk
Liner Notes for this Groove: This poem is linked to the Friday Writings post at Poets and Storytellers United. At the time of this posting, it is a few days past the second anniversary of a dear friend's death. This poem was inspired by thoughts I had when I visited one of our favorite nature centers.
